Michael P. Cary, Jr., PhD, RN, FAAN, is a tenured Associate Professor at the Duke University School of Nursing. His work examines how clinical, social, and healthcare-system factors affect recovery, healthcare use, and health outcomes among older adults and underserved populations.

Dr. Cary’s research has two complementary arms. The first develops and evaluates AI-enabled clinical decision-support tools that help care teams identify older adults at risk for poor recovery, improve discharge planning, and support successful transitions back to the community. The second identifies and mitigates bias in clinical AI tools to reduce the risk of inaccurate or unequal recommendations that may harm specific patient groups. Together, these areas advance the benefits of clinical AI while addressing its potential risks.

As Director of H.U.M.A.I.N.E.™—Human-Centered Use of Multidisciplinary Artificial Intelligence for Next-Gen Education and Research—Dr. Cary leads interdisciplinary efforts to prepare nurses and health system leaders to evaluate and govern AI responsibly. He also contributes to Duke Health’s Algorithm-Based Clinical Decision Support program, supporting the evaluation and monitoring of clinical algorithms. Through this work, he is helping shape national and global approaches to digital health policy, AI accountability, and patient protection.